Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. THY WILL BE DONE, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but DELIVER US FROM EVIL.

For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen †

181 Responses to Friday November 23rd – Open Thread

“A Valentine” (1786), a poem by Henry Livingston, Jr., the author of “Night Before Christmas.” Music from an 1806 score of “Birks of Envermay” from “The Duena,” a song appearing in Henry Livingston’s Music Manuscript. Illustrated by vintage postcards.

Since I only buy up to 1923, that’s the most modern that they depict. Rarely have I seen, and collected, medieval scenes. You see a lot of Colonial, which the postcard sellers call Victorian. ????? And you also see a lot of real Victorian. You see a few Roman scenes as there was still an interest in neo-classical. As for what I show in the music videos, I’ll put in any time period if the action fits. The people making these are probably working in the last decade of the 19th century, up thru 1923. I also collect antique editions of Night Before Christmas, and they go back into the middle of the 19th century. Those appear in my music video of NBC to the Trail Band.

“up thru 1923”. Of course the postcard makers made them continually until postcards were no longer fashionable and got replaced by folded cards. More private??? To find the older ones, use the search terms “postcards” “vintage”.

Very nice, and he kind of knew how to turn the heat up, … oh my 🤭🤫 … lovely Mary
😊👍❤️‼️

I used to read The Night Before Christmas to my sons when they were little for a small paper book that was free with the purchase of Christmas cards from Hallmark. Then bought larger one with wonderful illustrations … it was great fun, wonderful memories ❤️

Try to imagine what it’s like to be searching the Internet for genealogy (I desperately wanted my father’s poetry and thought one of his relatives might have a copy of one of his books, if I only knew who they were – mother left him when I was 6 weeks old) and come across a reference to your 5th great grandfather having actually written the poem. I used to say “Merry Christmas” to people in July because I loved to see them smile. We kept our tree up into April/May on the back porch and our neighbor gave tours of our backyard in spring. That was the start of 19 years of research with academics to discover whether that small note that has now disappeared from the web was true or not. Based on the last work with a Professor Emeritus who does the official Shakespeare books, it was true. We studied the movements of the tongue when reciting aloud and discovered the favorite mouth movements of Moore and Henry. Then examined NBC author as a separate person and discovered he used the SAME mouth movements Henry used, and they were totally outside the range of movements Moore preferred.

>>knew how to turn the heat up
Henry will always surprise you. He’s writing 1786-1827 and it’s as fresh and strange as today. DEEPLY religious, yet loves beautiful women. His moralizing is so subtle that it must have been amazing to have been raised as part of his immense family, while Moore’s is hit-you-over-head. “How sad to have left your stocking quite empty” to Moore’s young daughter. Henry believed in education for women, held native Americans in great respect, was against slavery after it was banned in NY state, was a Major in 1775 before the Declaration, wrote about his trip to the moon, about the cultures of the other planets as seen thru the telescope carved from the ice of the River Volga, wrote from the point of view of a lump of gold in the ground whose first vision other than blackness is the sight of a miner’s face emerging from the darkness, or from the point of view of a pine tree. I LOVE THIS MAN! Whenever I read him, I feel like I come away a better person.

We were interested to read, recently, about the man in California who ran short of grazing land for his herd of 13 buffalo. To solve this problem he put them on a barge and took them over to a large island in Lake Berryessa where there was lots of pasture. But what did the buffalo do? They jumped back into the lake, swam to shore and began charging fishermen and chasing automobiles — so enraged were they at being imprisoned on an island!

After all, neither man nor beast enjoys bondage, though many of us are in fact enslaved.

Our Lord said in John 8:32: “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” To this the religious leaders replied: “We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest Thou, Ye shall be made free?” But our Lord answered: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin” (Ver. 34). St. Paul says the same thing in Rom. 6:16:

“Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?”

Sad to say, many sincere religious people think that they can free themselves from sin by putting themselves in bondage to the Law, the Ten Commandments. This never works, for the Law can only condemn the sinner. Rom. 3:19,20 declares that the Law was given “that every mouth may be stopped and that all the world may be brought in guilty before God… for by the law is the knowledge of sin.” Again we have to turn to Christ for salvation and true liberty. He “died for our sins” (I Cor. 15:3) and has “redeemed us from the curse of the law” (Gal. 3:13).

Having believed this and trusted Christ as Savior, true Christians serve the Lord, not from fear, or to gain favor, but out of sheer love and gratitude. This is true liberty and this service is the only kind that God desires from us. Probably no man ever served the Lord more sincerely or tirelessly than the Apostle Paul. In II Cor. 5:14 he gives us the secret: “The love of Christ constraineth us…”

Romans 3:19 Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.
20 Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

1Corinthians 15:3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

Galatians 3:13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:

2Corinthians 5:14 For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead:

Good morning. On a recent trip to Pigeon Forge, TN, we went to Dolly Parton’s Dinner Theater. It is conducted around an arena where the expert horse riders perform. They used some younger bison in one of the scenes that had to be corralled. That was impressive.

Hey, Treepers – if you haven’t read Steve Scalise’s new book “Back In The Game”, I would highly recommend it. It is a page turner and well written. It is a total miracle that Mr. Scalise is living to tell his tale.

As an afterthought, 1st, note the timestamp on the photo lists the day and then the month. I haven’t had film developed in years but I believe US timestamp would show the month first and then the day. As I said previously, this probably occurred in the UK (hence, open window without a screen).

Oh, yeah, olderwiser…the person who received this pic had to have been freaking out – the doughnut was a great touch. And the majority of comments to his picture were made by women and they were definitely lusting after this handsome man. 😆

II just want to wish everyone a , happy Thanksgiving, (I wasn’t able too eat) due to My hernia.. Even wanting My famed Oyster stuffing, (well was able to get a few bites)..
I wish everyone the best..
Sorry I’m NOT feeling very well ATM..
CT42..God bless..

TMC had on The Canadians. A Movie about the Sioux who marched north into Canada but were stopped by the Mounties – 3 of them.
Today that movie would be called racist and the border would be opened wide.

Hmmm…I would have guessed Soros – because he takes the joy out of everything – but, he was probably not alive at the time – never liked the Grinch – then, again – we were not supposed to like him – very effective story – thanks for posting, Janie!

We are saddened to hear the oldest living Pearl Harbor veteran, Ray Chavez, has passed away at the age of 106. We were honored to host him at the White House earlier this year. Thank you for your service to our great Nation, Ray! pic.twitter.com/CA7Xdcxz89

Thx for the reply – I’m trying to get my email notifications RE-SET-UP…
Your reply showed up in Notifications (the bell icon) on the site but it was not sent to my email program…I’m just testing various WordPress settings to try to get email post notifications to start working again…

Thx – with this reply I was gonna try it for “Notify me of new posts via email” but that one isn’t showing…so, I checked “new comments” …
(but I fear I’ll get so many emails and then won’t be able to stop them LOL)

I have been completely shut out of WP/CTH…cannot log in in any fashion…not any functions…Can comment, but filling in info does not activate any other function!
Nothing else…No bell, no likeys.
WTH?
Get nothing but a blank page when trying to log on.
damn frustrating.

Weird that you can comment but can’t log in…usually it’s the other way ’round.
Might be just a WP glitch that’ll get fixed in a day or two…
At least that’s what I’m hoping for in my case…I think WP is stuck in a circular-linking funk mode…

Sharp…i have had fits w/WP, as have many.
But to be entirely shut out with no options for logging on is jsut so aggravating.
Nothing responds.
Also, I have been unable to bring up The_Donald.
Could one of you try?https://www.reddit.com/r/The_Donald
The site comes up and then goes blank. Wil not refresh, just gors blank.
WTH?
I search use duckduck, but have tried others.

I clicked the link you posted and it opened and seemed to work fine…BTW, my email notification issues got fixed some how…
I’m no IT expert but try a different browser…also try using a friend’s computer (or phone?) to sign in to the sites you’re having problems with – who knows, maybe your ISP provider is causing the issues…
Or maybe it’s your machine that is fouling up (can you try System Restore?)

My black Friday tradition.
I have 50 Christmas cards all set to mail, two go overseas to friends in Ireland and England.
Shopping? Not so much, we really don’t have stores here, well, there is a lovely grocery store.
I am going to fire up my home made smoker and do my home made bacon. This may be epic, it could be a disaster. :0

I cooked my turkey yesterday in my electric “Masterbuilt” smoker. It came out fabulous! really juicy and tender. It really helped free up a lot of room for cooking other things. I’m going to start using it more often!
I’m still cleaning up the aftermath!

My heart has for some time been heavy with the burden of truth. That truth is that America has entered her final days.

Over the past 60 or so years the American people have irrevocably traveled far down the broad road that leads to destruction. We will never return. Enticed by the lusts of the eyes and flesh, more than half of Americans embrace vile, evil, and perverted thoughts, beliefs, and practices antithetical to Scripture. They call good evil, and evil good. As a result, God has blinded their minds to their depravities and turned them over to the results of their ways. What are those results?

The results are the American people, blinded by their debauchery and sin, have time and again elected to Congress liars, frauds, con artists, and practitioners of evil who promise they will pass ever more laws to support and defend the evil, Satanically inspired beliefs of their constituents. Congress is now, for all intents, composed 100% of marxists, communists, and islamists. All of whom, supported by the blinded masses, plan together for the final – and complete – destruction of America. They’ve been astoundingly successful.

In a short 53 years, the marxists and communists have turned America from 80% white to only 61% white. It started in 1965 with Ted Kennedy’s Immigration and Naturalization Act; which tore down immigration laws that for decades protected and strengthened America by giving preference to immigrants “from a similar culture” as America, and gave precedence to mass immigration of third world peoples.

Whites will be a minority within the next 50 – 75 years. That’s a main prong of the attack on America. Barack Obama told us outright, he came to fundamentally transform The United States. Soon, the Communist/Islamic House will prosecute that plan by passing amnesty bills, repealing/reducing immigration laws, encouraging illegal immigration, and arguing in court that illegals have a right to vote. There’s nothing you or I can do to stop it. We’re outnumbered. Period.https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2018/11/lame_duck_house_must_pass_immigration_legislation_now.html

Only God Himself can save America from her appointment with Satan’s destruction. The question is, does God WANT to save America, or has he appointed America to destruction because of her national sins?

Our sliver of hope is this: God knows who are His, and He loves them unconditionally, with an everlasting love. That doesn’t mean He always removes the consequences of personal or national sin. America may never rise again in consequence of her sin and God’s wrath. Nevertheless, His word is full of examples of Him turning his anger away from His people when those people have humbled themselves before him and sought Him with their whole heart.

Read the stories of the Judean and Israeli Kings Asa, Jehoshaphat, and Hezekiah, and see how their national sins allowed their enemies to attack; and how their national repentance allowed God to turn back those attacks and save His people. Where are the shepherds of His flock today? Why aren’t they calling for national prayer days? National repentance? A day of fasting?

We have no one to save us but God. The nation must collectively and individually pray, repent, and ask forgiveness and restoration. Who knows, He may relent concerning the destruction of our homeland. There’s no time to waste.

“how their national sins allowed their enemies to attack; and how their national repentance allowed God to turn back those attacks and save His people.”

In the dispensation of grace, God is reconciling individuals back to himself despite what nation they belong to.

Matthew 10:6 But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

Matt 15:24 But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

2Corinthians 5:18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;

Ephesians 2:11 ¶ Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands;
12 That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:

13 But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.
14 ¶ For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;

15 Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;
16 And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:

When this unprophesied dispensation ends, God will resume his dealing with Israel and the covenants he has promised them.

Romans 11:25 For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.
26 And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:
27 For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.

“…Isaiah 3 records the coming judgment of God on the nation Israel because of her rebellion. The nation Israel had gone so far downhill, had sunk so low, that it was sick to the very core (Isa. 1:6). As you work through Isaiah’s eloquent description of the decline and destruction of his once flourishing nation the parallel with our own day is unavoidable:…”

aside from GOD’s Judgment and America’s collective sins…Americans, in general, are and have been dangerously uninformed, misinformed and ignorant of what has been about to happen or is happening or could happen, for too many years now.

and it’s not like we haven’t been warned.

but too much of what should have been given attention to…and nipped in the bud… has been scoffed-at as being either a “conspiracy theory” or some other type of wacko fringe theory met with eye-rolls and guffaws…until it’s too late.

and…imo…in many instances it’s about to be too late…if it isn’t already.

just as one example…about 9 yrs ago, I remember mentioning Regionalism and NAFTA (related) to some friends at a casual get-together…not unusual for us to discuss “current events”…and they all looked at me like I was a zombie…laughing, even.

conspiracy theory !

even today, many…too many.. still don’t know nor have even heard of NAFTA or Regionalism !

and…don’t even get me started on Sustainability …

even when it is being implemented before our very eyes in our own back yards..

Hubby set up an RSS reader with about 100 different news sites – he gets a WIDE range of news that is not being reported in the US mainstream press/national press. It’s kinda like his very own ‘DrudgeReport’ only with news providers that he personally selected. How does this relate to your post, Boots? Here’s how. What we are seeing – DAILY – based on these various news sites is quite clear:

THE US IS BEING MADE IRRELEVANT TO THE REST OF THE WORLD. I do not say this to discourage anyone here AT ALL. Stay with me…

If the US is indeed irrelevant in the grander world scheme, what must the US do?

LOOK INWARD. As we are made irrelevant, we will have NO OTHER CHOICE.

The hand of God bringing our nation to repentance, where Americans hit their knees and pray, asking forgiveness and restoration?

I have been busy since posting this morning. I’ve more errands today but a sneak peek at your responses has been rewarding. I’ll read a bit more, soon, but wanted to take a minute to thank you for your encouragement in the scriptures and in telling of His wonderful plan of individual redemption before national redemption. And also, for the hard realities of where we were, where we are, and upon what road we are.

I often think, and should think harder on it, that the rise of the Democrat Communists, Antifa, Spygate, FISC, Patriot Act, unchecked immigration, the war on gun rights, and of course the recurring evil villains of Hillary, Obama, Pelosi, Schumer….is indeed God’s hand of chastisement on this country.

Self-Discipline for Godliness
NOVEMBER 23, 2018
1 Timothy 4:7-10 7 But have nothing to do with worldly fables fit only for old women. On the other hand, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness; 8 for bodily discipline is only of little profit, but godliness is profitable for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. 9 It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance. 10 For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers.

Many people want self-discipline but struggle to achieve it. We see this virtue promoted by health professionals who admonish us to exercise regularly, choose healthy foods, and get adequate sleep. The business world has seminars to help us set and work toward goals, and financial experts advise us on self-control in spending. There are even experts who can help us manage our possessions.

Think about all the advantages of personal discipline: It gives us a sense of purpose and accomplishment, helps us feel less stressed, and results in improved health. Yet Paul declares that “bodily discipline is only of little profit” because it’s strictly for this life. What the apostle finds far more valuable is self-discipline for the purpose of godliness, “since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come” (1 Timothy 4:8).

Godliness is a Godward attitude that does what pleases the Lord. It adheres to the teachings of Jesus and flows from the knowledge of truth as revealed in Scripture (Titus 1:1 NIV). Therefore, we must know what God has said, what He desires, and what He expects of us regarding our character and conduct.

Discipline for godliness requires that we make reading, studying, and meditating on Scripture a priority. It means we say no to sinful desires and impulses in order to obey the Lord. The result will be a life transformed into Christlikeness, a clear conscience, and a spirit that is joyful and peaceful. In fact, the benefits extend even further. This earthly life is a mere breath in time, but godliness goes with us into heaven and leads to the eternal rewards of a life lived fully for Christ.
intouch.org
Dr. Charles Stanley

if there is something nefarious behind the fires, IMO, it has to do w/ the SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT agenda afoot…and going strong in California…and it involves a concerted effort (SB 827, for one) to do away with single-family housing on private property .

I think this is a ‘planned’ action – in line with the UN Agenda 21 plans – if people are forced to leave their homes – for whatever reason – then the ‘planned cities of the future’ can go forward – and they will never ‘own’ their homes, again – and are more easily controlled in planned cities – neat, huh?

I hear you, smiley – but we know how this story ends – and they will all be keeping company with their good buddy in the fiery furnace – that is why PT is working so hard to defeat the globalists – if he had his way – the UN would be gone – after all – they are the troublemakers – wonder who is going to end up there next – hope and pray it is not that gal from the State Department – she is too valuable to be wasted there.

As dry as we are here in the southwest/western USA and how open our southern border is, how long do you think it’ll take b4 the terrorist will be setting fires? 9/11 terrorist boarded planes with legally carried box cutters, carrying matches/bottle rockets into dry timberland isn’t hard to do is it? How many Americans already do that. BUILD THAT GIANT FRICKIN WALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! please.

Republicans and Democrats MUST come together, finally, with a major Border Security package, which will include funding for the Wall. After 40 years of talk, it is finally time for action. Fix the Border, for once and for all, NOW!

“…Though one 10 years ago stopped at the edge of the old mining town,” the Los Angeles Times reported. “The evacuation had been a disaster. Three of the four major roads out had caught fire. Evacuees were trapped for three hours in gridlock, leaving them defenseless if the fire had come.”

What about warnings?
Back then, a grand jury report and county fire planners said Paradise needed an evacuation plan to get people out quickly. But town leaders decided to section the town into “evacuation zones that could be emptied a few at a time,” according to the Los Angeles Times.

Butte County had also contracted for a private warning system, but only an estimated 30 percent of residents signed up to be on the list, according to officials. The Mercury News reported, however, that the sheriff’s department admitted that more could have been done. Many people reported receiving evacuation notices too late or not at all.”

they need to outlaw this Black Friday or maybe it’s appropriately named for the funerals that follow this day. This is how people do things in a civil society; After the Japanese Fukushima Nuclear Plant Disaster.

Our Heavenly Father, Your children come to you tonight to ask for healing and peace throughout our country so that we may return to being One Nation Under God. Guide us to be leaders in Your Kingdom, spreading Your Love and Salvation to all. Forgive us our sins and deliver us from evil.

Lord, we ask for a blanket of protection over all our troops and law enforcement who serve to defend and protect us. Bless our representatives with the strength and wisdom they need to achieve the path You have chosen for us.

Please place Your Guardian Angels of Protection around Donald Trump and Mike Pence and their families as they seek to lead America back to You.

Grant us patience, Lord, as the evil ones try to anger us and cause us to fall.
Spread blessings over Israel and Netanyahu.

We humbly ask that You please comfort those who are grieving and in pain.
Thank you Father, for Your Love and the gift of Life.

https://www.churchmilitant.com/news/article/kavanaugh-v.-ford
“After watching her husband rip into pro-death senators who used Dr. Christine Blasey Ford in attempts to derail the appointment of her husband to the U.S. Supreme Court, Ashley is asking all people of faith to unite in praying Psalm 40, which reads:”

“BE PLEASED, O LORD, TO DELIVER ME, LOOK DOWN, O LORD TO HELP ME. LET THEM BE CONFOUNDED AND ASHAMED TOGETHER, THAT SEEK AFTER MY SOUL TO TAKE IT AWAY. LET THEM BE TURNED BACKWARD AND BE ASHAMED THAT DESIRE EVILS TO ME.”